NATCHEZ &045;&045; As state education leaders were touting the statewide improvement of school test results, local educators were still poring over the information on Friday.

&uot;We are working hard to analyze the data,&uot; said Natchez-Adams Interim Superintendent Mary Kate Garvin.

Local results will be released &uot;first thing Monday morning,&uot; she said.

&uot;We are not finished going through everything,&uot; Garvin said, &uot;but, so far, things look good to me.&uot;

From preliminary scores pulled from the state’s department of education Web site, the NASD appears to have made some progress.

In March 2002, Mississippi public school students in grades four and seven took the Mississippi Writing Assessment to assess the student’s ability to produce writing that reflects increased proficiency.

The state average in Mississippi’s fourth-graders is 2.5. NASD’s fourth-graders scored 2.1, which is .4 below the state average.

There was, however, an improvement from last year’s score of 2.0.

On the same test, Mississippi’s seventh grade students scored 2.3, while NASD students in the same grade scored 1.9, a .1 decrease from last year.

State Superintendent of Education Dr. Richard Thompson said Friday that Mississippi students scored higher than ever on national and state tests.

&uot;We couldn’t be more proud of our students and teachers,&uot; Thompson said. &uot;Their performance shows they applied themselves, stepped up to the plate and hit a home run.&uot;

By scoring well on both national and state tests, Mississippi’s students are proving the state’s new curriculum and standards are working to raise student achievement, Thompson said.

&uot;Our educators are teaching the material well, our students our learning, parents are supportive and we are beginning to see real results of the state’s efforts to improve student learning and achievement,&uot; Thompson said.

Districts statewide began receiving test results earlier this week.

The Department of Education will continue to release specific subject area scores over the next few days.

The data sent is broken down by district, school and student, which allows districts to better determine their strengths and weaknesses and to make appropriate adjustments to curriculum or teaching style.